A Year in the Life of a ‘Bessie: New York Dance & Performance Award’ Nominator

More and more artists in the dance world are now working in hybrid and multi-disciplinary performances, necessitating a new way of thinking through and contextualizing their practices. In this vibrant multimedia lecture, including footage of the hottest artists working today, Muna Tseng will draw on her rich experience as both dancer and critic to consider the current art scene in New York. She serves on the selection committee of the prestigious New York Dance and Performance Awards, a.k.a. the Bessie Awards. She chairs the Current Practice sub-committee, assessing cutting-edge work that challenges standard definitions of dance – including art installation, performance art and long durational work. Following the presentation, Tseng will be joined by Hong Kong-New York choreographer-dancer Abby Man-Yee Chan, and moderator Anna CY Chan, Head of Artistic Development, West Kowloon Cultural District Authority, in a discussion which will investigate cross-boundary collaborations to unpack artistic issues within. Muna Tseng’s talk was originally commissioned by the Singapore International Festival of the Arts and presented at S.I.F.A.’s O.P.E.N.forum on July 5, 2016.

Muna Tseng is a Hong Kong-born, New York transplant dancer and choreographer who has choreographed and performed in over 30 critically acclaimed contemporary dance-theater works for Muna Tseng Dance Projects, appearing at the Kennedy Center, Lincoln Center, New York City seasons and at venues and festivals in the US and internationally, including several return appearances in Hong Kong, notably with The Pink, a collaboration with City Contemporary Dance Company and composer Tan Dun. She has won a Bessie: New York Dance & Performance Award and repeat Choreographic Fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, New York State Council on the Arts, and the New York Foundation for the Arts. Honors include “An Artist of National Merit” from the Smithsonian Institution and “Distinguished Service in the Arts” from the New York City Council President. She has managed the photographic archive of her late brother Tseng Kwong Chi since his early death in 1990 at age 39, overseeing exhibitions, editions and publications with galleries, collections and institutions world-wide. Inspired by visuals of Tseng Kwong Chi, she created and performed in SlutForArt a.k.a. Ambiguous Ambassador, a dance-theater work which won accolades in multiple New York seasons, on US and European tours. www.munatseng.org (Photo credit: Steve Sigoloff)

Abby Man-Yee Chan, co-artistic director of Mcmuimui Dansemble, independent choreographer and performer, is a graduate of the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts and a former member of the Hong Kong City Contemporary Dance Company (1991-1998). Chan received a fellowship from the Asian Cultural Council in 1995. Since then, she has danced with American choreographers Rosalind Newman, Sarah Skaggs, Muna Tseng, Bill Young, Sally Silvers, John Moran, Maura Donohue and Pele Bauch. Internationally, her choreography has shown in Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Taipei, Singapore, Seoul, Tokyo, Sydney, New York, Colorado & Sao Paulo. Her dance video “Miss Happiness” had the screening in Hong Kong, Macau and Guangzhou as one of the program of the 4th Jumping Frame International Dance Video Festival. Abby was invited in participating in Hong Kong Arts Festival’s commissioned works from 2001-2004, 2007 and 2012. She currently lives and works in Brooklyn New York. (Photo credit: Joanna Tam)

Anna CY Chan is the Head of Artistic Development (Dance) of the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority. She is responsible for shaping the district’s artistic direction and strategies for dance. Under her leadership, a series of “New Works Forum” programmes have been launched and co-presented, including “Dance Dialogue with Wayne McGregor”, “Screendance” and “Writing Choreographic Process” etc. These programmes offer Hong Kong artists a platform to explore innovative forms of creating and performing, and new ways of discussing and thinking about topics related to contemporary performances.
In 2007, Anna became the Vice-President (East Asia) of the World Dance Alliance Asia Pacific. Prior to this, she was Head of the Performing Arts Education Centre at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. During her tenure, the Centre created several successful community engagement projects, including “smARTS Journey” and “Performing Arts Marathon”. She was also the Chairperson of the Hong Kong Dance Alliance from 2006 to 2011.

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